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nomans_land2023-05-02 05:02 am
nml_mods) wrote in nomans_land2023-05-02 05:02 am
Entry tags:
On The First Day
It had been months.
Months of terror, of families ripped apart, refugees racing against the Ark in the sky, against the Plants that had once been their only source of survival on the world and had now been turned against them, raining lightning and death down on them like the hand of a vengeful God. Humanity pushed to the brink, fleeing their homes and communities, waves of refugees fleeing across the sands as more and more towns and cities fell to the reign of destruction that had been biting at their heels every step of the way.
And then, as the last descendants of the survivors of the Big Fall clustered in the city of Octovern, spiilling out into the streets, every available, livable space filled to capacity and beyond, what felt like the final days of humanity began. The sounds of artillery fire filled the air, the sight of the Ark and its grotesque ruler loomed overhead, and in the distant sky high above, the previously-inconceivable reinforcement ships from Earth took up orbit around No Man's Land. Throughout the night, explosions lit up the sky, thundering with deafening reports through the air, and yet the civilians below had settled into a still, terrified, anticipatory silence. They couldn't see, from their perspective, the figures atop the ruins of the Earth's space destroyers that had already fallen to the ground, locked in battle for the future of the people far below. But the sight of Millions Knives high above, terrifying and grotesque with the power of the Plants he had absorbed, was omnipresent, a never-ending threat, the harbinger of doom, biding his time until he could make good on his promise to wipe every last one of them off the face of existence.
And then something had changed.
Electrical currents rippled through the air above the downed ship, carrying screams on the wind. To the people below, Millions Knives' massive form had shifted, writhing, bellowing with unholy rage and pain and despair. And then it begun to unmake itself, shredding, crumbling, tearing itself apart at the seams and floating to the ground in tiny, shining, white particles. Tiny, white feathers drifted on the wind, closer and closer before, one by one, they began to settle to the roofs of the buildings, to the tops of cars and to the streets, and to the heads and faces of the humans staring up from below.
The instant that contact was made between feather and skin, a connection was made; between Human and Plant, between each person standing side by side, minds thrown open in bursts of light and expanding consciousness, and through the doors sprang multitudes of memories spanning hundreds of years. Suffering, laughter, pain, sorrow, joy, enslavement, death, pride, love. The Plants had made the connection to their creators - their keepers - that they had been silently pleading for since their first containment, and with it every man, woman, and child on the surface of the world began to see and feel and hear their stories and their cries for help. They did not want this war, they did not want this destruction. They had seen the promises of vengeance and a paradise for their kind atop the bones of humanity offered by Millions Knives and they had felt the hopes and dreams carried by Vash the Stampede of a kinder, more loving world, and they had made their choice.
Let there be love and peace in this world.
In the chaos that followed, as the bodies of the Plants began tumbling to the ground in a writhing mass and the screams of shock and confusion began to rise from the sea of humanity below, something rippled in the air, a last gasp of those silent voices before the connection was lost.
This was...different. New. As if reality had taken the distraction caused by the calamity below to shift itself sharply to the left, and then snapped. It started at the core of the mass of angelic bodies as men and women began to rush to their aid, a shockwave in the fabric of creation that rumbled silently in the atoms of the world and ricocheted outward, along the ground, through the air, until it had enveloped the entire planet. Time froze for an instant, and to the eyes of all who had the capacity for sight, that leftward shift became manifest, the world doubling on itself as the ground shook beneath their feet.
Wails of confusion and fear rose into the night sky, and for a brief moment, it felt as if the world were about to unmake itself on the molecular level. But then, just as suddenly as it had come, the distortion snapped back into place with a loud, ear-splitting CRACK, and in the stunned silence that followed, only one thing could be certain; things were not the same as they had been mere moments ago, as if everything and yet nothing at all had changed, all at once.
The world of No Man's Land was as it should be, but all across the surface of the planet, pockets of reality had split open, sending the inhabitants of mirrored existences tumbling through wide, unseen rifts. People and places outside of time and space found themselves staggering to their feet in a world that was both foreign and familiar at the same time, found themselves face to face with their own reflection made flesh, tossed about by the pleas of a race reaching across the fabric of creation for aid in putting a stop to a war that had been fought time and time again, across reality after reality, without fail.
Thus began the new chapter in the history of No Man's Land.
[Wherever your character was, whatever they were doing, when the rifts in reality opened, they will have found themselves rocked by a massive earthquake that lastes a few short seconds before settling with a loud crack, like thunder. While no damage will be left in its wake, the characters themselves will realize that though the planet appears to be the same, it will quickly become evident that they are in an alternate reality of the place they call home. Are they standing in the rubble of a once-destroyed city now remade whole? Is the bar they had been taking refuge in suddenly gone, leaving them tumbling to the sand with nothing but their drink in their hand? And what of the friends that had been standing by their side seconds before? This is where your stories begin.]
Months of terror, of families ripped apart, refugees racing against the Ark in the sky, against the Plants that had once been their only source of survival on the world and had now been turned against them, raining lightning and death down on them like the hand of a vengeful God. Humanity pushed to the brink, fleeing their homes and communities, waves of refugees fleeing across the sands as more and more towns and cities fell to the reign of destruction that had been biting at their heels every step of the way.
And then, as the last descendants of the survivors of the Big Fall clustered in the city of Octovern, spiilling out into the streets, every available, livable space filled to capacity and beyond, what felt like the final days of humanity began. The sounds of artillery fire filled the air, the sight of the Ark and its grotesque ruler loomed overhead, and in the distant sky high above, the previously-inconceivable reinforcement ships from Earth took up orbit around No Man's Land. Throughout the night, explosions lit up the sky, thundering with deafening reports through the air, and yet the civilians below had settled into a still, terrified, anticipatory silence. They couldn't see, from their perspective, the figures atop the ruins of the Earth's space destroyers that had already fallen to the ground, locked in battle for the future of the people far below. But the sight of Millions Knives high above, terrifying and grotesque with the power of the Plants he had absorbed, was omnipresent, a never-ending threat, the harbinger of doom, biding his time until he could make good on his promise to wipe every last one of them off the face of existence.
And then something had changed.
Electrical currents rippled through the air above the downed ship, carrying screams on the wind. To the people below, Millions Knives' massive form had shifted, writhing, bellowing with unholy rage and pain and despair. And then it begun to unmake itself, shredding, crumbling, tearing itself apart at the seams and floating to the ground in tiny, shining, white particles. Tiny, white feathers drifted on the wind, closer and closer before, one by one, they began to settle to the roofs of the buildings, to the tops of cars and to the streets, and to the heads and faces of the humans staring up from below.
The instant that contact was made between feather and skin, a connection was made; between Human and Plant, between each person standing side by side, minds thrown open in bursts of light and expanding consciousness, and through the doors sprang multitudes of memories spanning hundreds of years. Suffering, laughter, pain, sorrow, joy, enslavement, death, pride, love. The Plants had made the connection to their creators - their keepers - that they had been silently pleading for since their first containment, and with it every man, woman, and child on the surface of the world began to see and feel and hear their stories and their cries for help. They did not want this war, they did not want this destruction. They had seen the promises of vengeance and a paradise for their kind atop the bones of humanity offered by Millions Knives and they had felt the hopes and dreams carried by Vash the Stampede of a kinder, more loving world, and they had made their choice.
Of course, but...what would he do at a time like this?
I wonder if he'll laugh again
I wonder if he'll follow his ideals again.
I see. You all know him as well. That young man with a gentle smile.
Little Red Brother.
Let there be love and peace in this world.
In the chaos that followed, as the bodies of the Plants began tumbling to the ground in a writhing mass and the screams of shock and confusion began to rise from the sea of humanity below, something rippled in the air, a last gasp of those silent voices before the connection was lost.
Help Us. Help him. Please.
This was...different. New. As if reality had taken the distraction caused by the calamity below to shift itself sharply to the left, and then snapped. It started at the core of the mass of angelic bodies as men and women began to rush to their aid, a shockwave in the fabric of creation that rumbled silently in the atoms of the world and ricocheted outward, along the ground, through the air, until it had enveloped the entire planet. Time froze for an instant, and to the eyes of all who had the capacity for sight, that leftward shift became manifest, the world doubling on itself as the ground shook beneath their feet.
Wails of confusion and fear rose into the night sky, and for a brief moment, it felt as if the world were about to unmake itself on the molecular level. But then, just as suddenly as it had come, the distortion snapped back into place with a loud, ear-splitting CRACK, and in the stunned silence that followed, only one thing could be certain; things were not the same as they had been mere moments ago, as if everything and yet nothing at all had changed, all at once.
The world of No Man's Land was as it should be, but all across the surface of the planet, pockets of reality had split open, sending the inhabitants of mirrored existences tumbling through wide, unseen rifts. People and places outside of time and space found themselves staggering to their feet in a world that was both foreign and familiar at the same time, found themselves face to face with their own reflection made flesh, tossed about by the pleas of a race reaching across the fabric of creation for aid in putting a stop to a war that had been fought time and time again, across reality after reality, without fail.
[Wherever your character was, whatever they were doing, when the rifts in reality opened, they will have found themselves rocked by a massive earthquake that lastes a few short seconds before settling with a loud crack, like thunder. While no damage will be left in its wake, the characters themselves will realize that though the planet appears to be the same, it will quickly become evident that they are in an alternate reality of the place they call home. Are they standing in the rubble of a once-destroyed city now remade whole? Is the bar they had been taking refuge in suddenly gone, leaving them tumbling to the sand with nothing but their drink in their hand? And what of the friends that had been standing by their side seconds before? This is where your stories begin.]
no subject
Not yet, but I have a feeling you're going to.
[ did vash really expect him to remember every person he mentions through all the stories he tells? of course, nai will because he prides himself on his memory skills, but still! ]
no subject
She lives on a ship. [ His grip on Knives's hand tightens – this is important. ] The only ship left that still works.
[ Which might not be true anymore, with the arrival of the ships from Earth, but he doesn't have the first idea where those might be, or how to get in touch with them. ]
The only sure way to get in contact with her is by radio. Any house out by itself will have one, and in any town big enough to have a bar, there'll be one there. Her name is Luida, on the three gigahertz band, channel eighteen. Luida three eighteen. Tell her who you are and she'll come get you.
[ Just in case. In case they get separated, or... or something happens. ]
I trust her with my life.
no subject
... I understand.
[ he brushes his cheek against vash's hand, still covering his own. why did he feel this overwhelming sense of dread? ] ... Are you going to leave me?
[ the question cuts his throat as he speaks it, that familiar maw of fear creeping up again. nai's jaw clenches. ]
no subject
[ He can hear the concern in Knives's question, feel the fear in that brush of his cheek. If they weren't in a hurry, he'd stop and wrap his brother in a hug until all those concerns were banished. As it is, this is the best he can do. Hopefully Knives can hear the determination in that word, the certainty. ]
I will never leave you, okay? I promise. You're stuck with me! [ At least, not intentionally. ] This is just for emergencies, okay? In case you wake up in a different city tomorrow, or... or if we get separated.
no subject
I won't forgive you if you do. [ he huffs, still keeping his cheek pressed to vash's knuckles. ] In fact, I'll be very angry. So don't even think about it, okay?
no subject
I promise, brother. I won't leave you.
[ If there's a fight, he will absolutely drop Knives on the sidelines, but that's hardly the same thing. No, they're stuck together, at least on Vash's side. The more Knives learns about the future as his older self's role in it, the more likely it is that he'll leave, but Vash never will. Never. ]
After this is over, I want to take you to meet Luida anyway, and the rest of the folks from the ship! They've got access to the old libraries and databases. If anyone can figure out a way to get you back, it'll be them.
no subject
[ the disposition of a very put-upon old man, and yet so painfully sensitive to the world around him that it shakes nai constantly. since tesla, every nerve feels exposed as he fights back the urge to scream and scream. it hurts, and selfishly, he wants everyone to taste even a fraction of that pain.
but vash is a balm, albeit temporary, as nai is learning. his eyes close, drained dry by the whirlwind his own emotions have put him through in such a short amount of time. the skies are as clear as they'll ever be. ]
Is she like Rem? [ nice, soft-spoken, and always ready with a smile... ]
no subject
Knives's weight settles a bit against Vash's back. With a little smile, Vash changes his gait from his quicker long-distance pace to something a little slower but a lot more smooth. ]
Like Rem?
[ Warm, and gentle, constantly laughing and joking and kind? As much as thinking of her hurts, it's a good hurt, especially with Knives warm against his back. He chuckles under his breath at the thought of Luida in Rem's birthday glasses -- he honestly can't even imagine it! ]
No, if anything, she's more like you. She's smart, and thorough... when she was younger I didn't dare argue with her about anything! She was way too stubborn, always had to be right... [ Sound familiar? ] Now that she's older, I still don't argue with her, because most of the time, she is right.
no subject
[ not that vash's own brand of stubbornness deterred nai in the slightest. ]
So... you like her because she reminds you of me? [ even if vash doesn't say it, he doesn't have to. he's done a pretty good job of avoiding the topic of himself, his future self, out of self-preservation and maybe even for vash's own feelings. every word exchanged between them tiptoes between pain and comfort. nai just wants to see his brother happy, yet his very presence seems to threaten that. ]
no subject
Not just because of that! [ He'd give Knives a poke for that, if his hand wasn't already being used as a pillow! ] She's also a good person, Kni. One of the best you'll ever meet. She's spent her whole life doing everything she can so humans and plants can live together. They've even managed to contact Earth!
no subject
nai hums, cracking one eye open to peer up at vash. ] Really? Are they going to come here?
[ he can't help but be curious, what was earth like now? their ships had left 200 years ago, and everything nai learned about their home planet seemed bleak at best. a cautionary tale only fit to encourage their mission. the humans' mission, that is. ]
If you think she's a good person... [ he trails off, lips pulling down. ] Do you really trust them, Vash?
no subject
There may very well be problems with the new Earth forces – if they're anything like the local military, there will be more than a few problems! – but that doesn't change the fact that the ships represent hope for millions. ]
Not all of them. But most of them, yes! People are mostly good! And Luida saved my life once, her and the rest of the ship's residents. I've known her for decades, and I trust her completely. [ He tugs on Knives's hand, just enough to make his point. ] I trust her with you, brother.
no subject
he'd been born with powers. dangerous enough to worry rem, but the blades that beckoned to his call were only a danger to those that meant them harm. wasn't this his birthright, then? a protector of the weak and defenseless. ]
I trust you, Vash. [ only you. perhaps that trust can extend to others, but only through him. ]
no subject
I'm glad to hear it!
[ And only you, yes, he can hear the finality of that statement. He understands, really! ]
It's okay that you're suspicious of them. Just don't make up your mind whether they're good or bad until they have a chance to show you who they are, okay? For me?
[ The only humans he knows are the people from the ship, Rem, and the mob that attacked them the last time they'd met. It's not really a stellar introduction to a species! If he's going to see humans for the amazing people they are, then he just needs to meet more people, under better circumstances. Making that happen in the middle of a war might be a challenge, but he has faith. ]
Meet some more humans, and then decide what you think of them. [ And, then, a little more quietly: ] Don't judge them all on what you've seen so far, okay? Remember, those folks back at the diner had good reason for protecting their town. They're not all like that.
no subject
[ his fingers dig into vash's shoulder, nails biting into the thick coat. ] I'm worried about him... He can't protect himself and- [ he vividly remembers the screen visuals, vash and tesla placed in the same folder, different from his own. the implications make him sick. ] I have to protect him. [ he almost continues, but the words lodge in his throat and instead he falls silent. white-knuckled grip unrelenting. the rising tide of dread threatens to drown him. ]
... I want to meet your friends first. [ he states quietly, almost muffled against vash's coat. maybe vash is right, maybe he isn't, but nai will trust him regardless. ]
no subject
You're a good brother. Thank you for looking out for him.
[ Do they delete all the files on the plants? Would that be enough to keep them from being noticed by the rest of the ship's crew, the next time they wake? Conrad saw them, though... or will see them, Vash isn't certain about when, exactly, his brother is coming from -- and a hundred and fifty years later, Vash can say with certainty that Conrad can't be trusted. If he tells Kni that, he suspects that Conrad will meet with an accident, and he can't allow that to happen. But maybe Conrad's schedule gets messed up and he doesn't wake up any time soon? Staying in cryo for an extra twenty years won't hurt him, right? Maybe he could...
But then the road curves around an outcropping of stone, and on the other side stretches the city of December. Almost the size of July, once home to nearly a hundred thousand people, from a distance it looks completely deserted. There's no sound, none of that hum of human activity. No movement, that he can make out. A fire burns somewhere in the northwest corner, and there's what looks like a ion cannon jutting out of the remnants of the ship in the city center, but other than that, there's no sign that people have been here in some time.
And above, the skies are clear. There's no sign of the ark anywhere. ]
no subject
Is it empty...?
[ he can't hear anything like he did in the town, only dead air fills the space. ] Vash?
no subject
Kni, I don't think...
[ But before he can finish his sentence the planet rumbles beneath his feet. Vash stumbles, nearly falling, and before he can right himself the weight on his back vanishes. Frantic, he spins around, but Kni hasn't fallen to the ground. His brother is nowhere to be seen. ]
Kni!?